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| Tropical Islands | |
|---|---|
 Tropical Islands Resort inside the dome | |
 Interactive map of Tropical Islands | |
| Location | Krausnick, Germany |
| Coordinates | 52°02′15″N13°44′55″E / 52.03750°N 13.74861°E /52.03750; 13.74861 |
| Owner | Parques Reunidos |
| Opened | 19 December 2004 |
| Website | tropical-islands.de |
Tropical Islands Resort is a tropical-themed indoorwater park located in the formerBrand-Briesen Airfield inHalbe, a municipality in the district ofDahme-Spreewald inBrandenburg,Germany, 50 kilometres (31 miles) from the southern boundary ofBerlin.[1] It is the largest indoor water park in the world, bigger thanCanada'sWorld Waterpark atWest Edmonton Mall, and is housed in a formerairship hangar (known as the Aerium), which is the biggest free-standing hall in the world and thefourth-largest building in the world by usable volume.[2] The hall belonged to the companyCargolifter until its insolvency in 2002.
Tropical Islands has a maximum capacity of 8,200 visitors per day. Approximately 600 people work at the park. Spanish entertainment groupParques Reunidos acquired Tropical Islands in December 2018.[3]
Tropical Islands can be reached by taking theA13 autobahn, or by taking a train toBrand Tropical Islands station, followed by a free shuttle bus.
In 1938, GermanLuftwaffe began development ofBrand-Briesen Airfield. TheRed Army took the site in May 1945 and occupied the site afterWorld War II, adding a second runway and nuclear-resistant command and control facilities for the fighter aircraft regiment.
With thereunification of Germany in 1989/1990, theSoviet Armed Forces agreed to return all military bases by 1994. Fully owned by theFederal Government of Germany since 1992,Cargolifter AG bought the former military airfield to constructairships. It began development of a new construction hall, 360 metres (1,180 feet) long, 210 metres (690 feet) wide and 107 metres (351 feet) high, which cost €78 million. At 5.5 million m³ (194 million ft³), it is one of thelargest buildings on Earth by volume, and is the world's largest single hall without supporting pillars inside. The hangar was commissioned as anairship hangar namedAerium in November 2000, but the airship it was intended to house – the CL160 – was never built. CargoLifter went bankrupt in mid-2002, at which point usage of the hangar was abandoned. It was open for visitors, though.
The former airship hangar was purchased by theMalaysian corporationTanjong with plans to renovate it into a theme park resort on 11 June 2003 for €17.5 million, of which €10 million was a subsidy from the state of Brandenburg. The building permit for constructing the theme park inside the hall was granted on 2 February 2004, and Tropical Islands water park officially opened on 19 December 2004.
Inside the hall, the air temperature is maintained at 26 °C (79 °F) and air humidity at approximately 64%. It is open every day of the year except Christmas Eve.[4]
Tropical Islands has a number of different themed areas:
A 4,000 m2 (43,000 sq ft) children's play area opened in 2007. In mid-2007, a sauna and spa facility with six separate areas was added, the largest tropical sauna complex in Europe. The design of the saunas is inspired byUNESCO World Heritage Sites inSouth-East Asia, including a cave temple onElephanta Island inIndia and theAngkor Wat temple inCambodia. The bathing area includes a 27-metre-high (89 ft)water slide tower with four slides, a children's play area and acrazy golf course.
According to figures published by the company,[citation needed] Tropical Islands has spent €23 million on further development and expansion work. The original total investment sum announced was €75 million, including a €17 million subsidy from the state ofBrandenburg for the purpose of preserving the 501 jobs.
In 2008, a campsite was added close to the Tropical Islands hall.
At first, visitor numbers remained behind original estimates. For a cost-effective operation, 1.25 million visitors per year are required. In 2005, the resort lost between 10 and 20 million euros. By October 2006 there were about 600,000 visitors. The initial lack of visitors has been attributed to a variety of reasons, including the relatively remote location of Tropical Islands. In addition, in Berlin, South Brandenburg, the resort's immediate surrounding area, the average disposable income is below the national average. The target demographic of the resort was extended to attract visitors from further away, includingPoland.
By altering the ticket price structure and adding new overnight accommodations, visitor attendance subsequently improved. According to then-managing director Ole Bested Hensing, 2008 was the first time Tropical Islands Resort made a profit, when it recorded 300,000 overnight stays.[5]
Early on in the resort's operations, there were issues with growing plants inside the dome, as it let in insufficient light for the plants to carry outphotosynthesis effectively. In October 2005, the southern aspect of the dome along the "South Sea" bathing area had a special UV-transparent film made ofETFE installed. This 20,000-square-metre (220,000 sq ft) "window" allows unobstructed natural daylight to enter the dome. The palms, trees and bushes have grown well since.
"Waterpark Information" (in German).
| International | |
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| Geographic | |
